13 November 2012: Lighting Africa has released a brief, titled “Trends and Developments in the Africa Off-Grid Lighting Market,” which finds sales of quality solar lanterns in Sub-Saharan Africa increased by 300% between 2008 and 2012. The increase indicates that up to four million people from low-income households and micro-businesses now have access to clean lighting.

Daniel Murphy, Program Manager of Lighting Africa for the World Bank, noted that “This dramatic uptake of modern quality lanterns proves that portable lamps are a viable pre-electrification strategy for governments to provide rural communities with clean energy while working on expanding national electricity grids.” While the brief also finds that market share has increased by 900% between 2009 and 2012, it notes that further growth potential remains enormous, since only 2-3% of the potential African consumers without electricity currently use the lanterns.

The report further finds that: the number of manufacturers and distributors of quality lanterns is rapidly growing; multinationals are increasingly entering this market; and environmentally friendly and user-friendly design features recently are being provided.

Lighting Africa is a market development programme supporting the creation and expansion of markets for clean, efficient, modern lighting in Africa. It is implemented by the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation (IFC). [Lighting Africa Press Release] [Publication: Trends and Developments in the Africa Off-Grid Lighting Market] [Publication: Trends and Developments in the Africa Off-Grid Lighting Market (French)]